


Stay Alive, That Would be Enough

by bad_ash10



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Gen, I'm bad at tags, Sorry Not Sorry, daisy just be out here wildin while under hives sway, hive is a dick, just read and feel the angst, kat this has a v sad ending, slight mind control
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-08
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:02:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27447568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bad_ash10/pseuds/bad_ash10
Summary: Daisy is under Hive's sway. Can May and Coulson bring her back to their side?Slight canon divergence from S3 when the team tries to free Daisy from Hive's sway. (I don't really remember how it went down in season 3, but this is an AU, so I don't think it really matters?)
Relationships: Melinda May & Skye | Daisy Johnson, Phil Coulson & Melinda May, Phil Coulson & Melinda May & Skye | Daisy Johnson, Phil Coulson & Skye | Daisy Johnson
Comments: 13
Kudos: 40
Collections: Angst War 2020





	Stay Alive, That Would be Enough

**Author's Note:**

> This made me sad. Hope you cry, Kat! 
> 
> And I mean that in the most loving way possible. ;)

“I’m telling you, Daisy slammed me into a wall and choked me almost to the point of unconsciousness!” Fitz yelled in frustration. “She’s not herself, and we need to be  _ extremely  _ careful if we approach her again.”

May however, didn’t buy that Daisy would ever seriously hurt one of their team, even under Hive’s sway. “It was a warning, Fitz!” she growled angrily. “If she wanted to kill you, she easily could have!”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying, May!” Fitz sighed and took a deep breath before continuing again. “She’s possessed by Hive, there’s no denying it. And she doesn’t  _ want  _ to kill us… but if we get between her and whatever goal he’s got her working towards, I’m afraid of what may happen.”

May rolled her eyes and crossed her arms defiantly. To her, there was  _ no way _ Daisy would seriously harm a member of the team, regardless of whatever alien voodoo was in her system. She may strike to disable, but Daisy would never go for a kill-shot against her team. “What about you, Phil? What do you think?”

Coulson took a deep breath, carefully weighing their options. He wanted Daisy home as quickly as possible, but he also thought they’d have to outsmart her and the alien possessing her before they could chance it. “We’ll make a plan; we’re going to have to…”

“She’ll ask for me,” Lincoln said softly from the doorway, causing everyone to turn to look at him.

“What’re you thinking?” Simmons asked him curiously.

“Hive’s gathering Inhumans right? When she asks for me to come, what if we take them someone else? Someone who might be able to kill Hive?”

Everyone except May scoffed at Lincoln’s suggestion. “You want to take Andrew,” she said calmly, fixing him with an icy stare.

Lincoln nodded solemnly. “I know what he means to you, May, but every Inhuman is made for a purpose.”

May stared him down, but Lincoln didn’t shy away. 

“What if his purpose is to save us all? If we kill Hive, I think it will free Daisy and the others from his hold.” He looked pointedly from May to Coulson and back again. “I know you don’t like me, but  _ please  _ trust me.”

Coulson looked from one member of the team to the next gauging their reactions. Most seemed reluctant, but they weren’t the most important votes in this situation. Finally he looked to May, who gave an almost imperceptible nod. It seemed they would have no choice but to give Andrew over to Hive as a last ditch effort to save Daisy and the other Inhumans.

* * *

“You guys shouldn’t have come.”

Phil and Melinda briefly made eye contact before turning back to Daisy. She looked horrible, and they were both concerned for her well being.

“Did you really think we’d just send Lincoln?” Coulson said with a jerk of his head toward the containment pod behind him. “Once we got wind of you wanting to bust him out, we thought we’d make a trade: you for Lincoln.”

Daisy tipped her head to the side, “Yeah, that’s not really how this works, Coulson.”

May stepped forward. “It’s going to be an even trade, Dais. That’s the only way this happens,” she said firmly. “You belong with Shield.”

Daisy stepped forward menacingly, a look of displeasure on her face. At this close distance, May could see just how dark the circles were under Daisy’s eyes, and how skinny the girl had become.

May stood her ground, unfazed by Daisy’s attempt to intimidate her. “Come home with us, Daisy.” May asked quietly. “ _ Please.” _

“I said, that’s not how this is going to work,  _ May,”  _ Daisy said through gritted teeth.

They were running out of time. Daisy was becoming irritable, and they didn’t know if Hive might arrive hoping to get Lincoln under his sway as well.

Coulson stepped forward now, too. “Fine. We’ll take you by force then, Daisy, but you’re coming home with us.”

May struck quickly, knocking Daisy off her feet with one swift kick while Coulson pulled his Icer. Daisy sat on the dirty floor staring up at the two of them, an amused look on her face. She quickly held out a hand and quaked the gun apart, and it fell out of Coulson’s hands in pieces.

Daisy pushed herself roughly to her feet. “Look, this whole, ‘mom and dad to the rescue’ thing was cute at first, but now you guys are just pissing me off. Just give me Lincoln so I can go,” she seethed as she made to push her way past Coulson and May toward the containment pod.

Melinda had no intention of letting her pass, and caught Daisy’s arm. “Daisy. Don’t make us do this the hard way.”

Daisy laughed coldly and jerked her arm free of May’s grasp. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if you get in my way.”

“Fine,” May responded with a slight nod, resigning herself for what was to come.

Coulson knew if they couldn’t bring Daisy peacefully, they were to, as May put it, bring her in the hard way, but he’d hoped it wouldn’t come to this. “Daisy,” he began, “don’t do this.”

Daisy struck quickly, catching May off guard with a strong left hook before landing a kick to Coulson’s knee that took him to the ground.

May threw several quick jabs at Daisy, but the younger agent easily blocked and dodged them. May finally landed a kick to Daisy’s middle, causing her to step back, winded.

“Is that all you’ve got?” Daisy asked between gasps. Hive’s effects on her painfully obvious after the minimal amount of fighting they had done.

Daisy punched and kicked, trying her hardest to best May for a bit longer, but was getting nowhere. Instead, Daisy gave May a small quake, knocking her off balance. Daisy took her advantage to knock May off her feet with a sweeping kick before turning quickly to see Coulson attempting to pull himself to his feet. She quaked him hard enough that he collapsed on the floor again.

May caught her by surprise, catching her in a sort of headlock from behind.

Daisy couldn’t break free, and instead quaked them backward, hoping to run into a wall or a pillar to shake May lose. They collided with something, and Daisy heard May grunt with the impact, and her grasp temporarily loosened, allowing Daisy to break the hold. She turned quickly to face May and aimed a quake at her former S.O.’s leg, hearing a sickening crack and a scream before May slid to the floor, crumpling in a heap in front of… the containment module.

_ Perfect.  _ She could get Lincoln and go. Daisy approached the keypad but stopped abruptly as she saw through the glass that it wasn’t Lincoln inside- it was Lash.

“I tried to do this without hurting you, but you’re forcing my hand,” she spat angrily, her gaze swinging wildly from Coulson and May, both of whom were in obvious pain, but she couldn’t be bothered to care. She had warned them. She just wanted Lincoln and to  _ go. _

Coulson had somehow gotten to his feet and kept glancing from Daisy to May, who was still on the ground, breathing hard, her focus solely on Daisy.

“You know why we can’t give you Lincoln, right?” May panted through her labored breathing.

“To be honest, May, I don’t give a damn.”

In her frustration, Daisy had unintentionally started quaking the entire building, but May wasn’t deterred. She raised her head.“We  _ all _ want you to come back home,” she said pleading with Daisy through teeth gritted with pain.

“I have a home now, and it’s not with _you,”_ Daisy spat as the quakes intensified again, this time bringing a couple of tiles down from the ceiling as the building began to shake around them. Daisy turned, keeping her back to them.

Coulson made his way to May. “Hey. You ok?” He asked quietly, for fear of bringing Daisy’s attention back to them.

May’s eyes were clouded with pain, but she gave a short nod.

Daisy was pacing, mumbling softly to herself, apparently attempting to figure out her next move.

“Phil,” May whispered. “I thought we could do this.”

He could see the worry and concern in her eyes. “I thought so, too, Mel.” Coulson glanced over his shoulder and saw Daisy was still pacing, she was beside herself with her anger and frustration. “Maybe Fitz was right,” he added, growing steadily more worried about Daisy’s erratic behavior.

“I think we need to let Lash free,” Melinda said with a wince as she sat up a little straighter, her determination returning. “Then we can get Daisy into the containment module.”

“You can’t even stand, May.”

Melinda rolled her eyes.

“Don’t give me that. Daisy broke your femur, the strongest bone in the human body. Do you know how much  _ force  _ that takes?” Coulson had been just as determined to take Daisy home as she was, but now? Seeing the disregard that Daisy had for them while under Hive’s sway was…. Worrying to say the least.

“We’re out of options,” she hissed at him. “There’s no other way, and we’re not leaving here without her.”

He stared dubiously at her, trying to decide if she was serious.

May reached out a hand toward him. “Are you going to help me up? Or are you going to make me do this on my own?”

Apparently, she was set on taking Daisy home. Coulson put her arm around his neck and grasped her firmly around the waist. “Ready?” He knew better than to remind her how much this would hurt.

At her nod, he lifted. Barely the second after her leg began to move, the pain made her vision go dark, and it took all she had not to cry out and bring Daisy’s attention to them.

Phil quickly helped her steady herself against the outer panel of the module, close enough to the keypad that she would be able to open and shut the door when the time came.

“You sure you’re ok?” he asked softly.

May shook her head slightly. For her to admit that she wasn’t ok was worrying, but he could only imagine the pain she was feeling.

Coulson knew the best way to distract May from her pain was to give her a task to focus on instead, and they both had to be ready for whatever Daisy might throw at them. “I’ll distract her. You free Lash. And then we’ll fight like hell to get her into the module.”

“Maybe Lash will help us.” May whispered.

“Let’s hope,” Coulson responded before he slowly started to circle around Daisy, hoping to put her between him and the containment module so she wouldn’t see May at the keypad until it was too late.

“Daisy!” He called when he was a few feet away, and she turned to face him. It was only then that he noticed she had a phone in her hand. “Who’d you call?”

She shrugged. “He’ll be here any second.”

There was a hiss from the hydraulics on the doors of the containment module, and Daisy whipped around to see Lash striding toward her.

She sent out a quake toward him, and he flew backwards toward the containment module, knocking May off her already unsteady feet as he collided with her.

Lash was back on his feet and ready to fight Daisy, but Coulson ignored them both and sank to his knees at May’s side. She was conscious, and gave him a pained look. They needed to get out of here before Hive showed up and complicated a mission that was already FUBAR.

As he looked up, Daisy and Lash were still fighting, but there was a familiar figure emerging from the shadows. It was too late. Hive was here.

* * *

Daisy was tired. 

Tired of fighting.

Tired of being lied to.

Just...  _ tired. _

Instead of being somewhere where she could be of some use to Hive, here she was, fighting alongside him against Andrew. 

No.  _ Lash. _

Hive was yelling at Lash as the fight dragged on. He had tried to sway Lash, but somehow Lash was immune. 

It made no sense to Daisy, but she herself was becoming less and less useful as her drained body started to tire.

Coulson was also yelling, but he was calling her name. She hoped he would stop - it was only distracting her from the fight.

Why did Coulson and May have to ruin this? She had asked for Lincoln, and all they would’ve had to do would be to allow him to come to her. But instead, they caused all of this mess.

Hive knocked Lash back, almost to the door of the containment module where Coulson was still crouched next to May. 

“Daisy! Quake him!” Hive growled.

Daisy used her rage at May and Coulson to fuel as she propelled herself across the room with a quake and then used all the strength she could muster to aim another blast at Lash, pushing him back finally into the containment module.

She held him in place with a one-handed quake as she reached for the control panel with the other, but suddenly she was thrown off her feet as something heavy collided with her from one side. She realized Coulson had tackled her in an attempt to let Lash loose once again.

* * *

Melinda watched Coulson and Daisy tumble across the floor, barely registering what was happening, she was too distracted as Hive was now making his way ominously toward her.

With a tilt of his head, he eyed her almost hungrily. “Agent May.”

“Ward Wanna-be,” she spat angrily, the pain of her injuries clouding her judgement more than a little.

Hive’s eyes darkened at the insult and he extended a hand, presumably to consume her as he had done to other humans to regenerate himself.

But Lash stepped out of the containment module at the last second, somehow countering the floating particles from Hive with a stream of blue energy that caught and ultimately seemed to destroy them. Caught by surprise at this new development, Hive reacted too late when Lash pushed him over the ledge to the first floor far below them.

Lash quickly returned and pulled Melinda to her feet, causing her to nearly blackout once again, but he kept her steady.

“Do you trust me?” Lash asked her quietly.

All she heard was Andrew, asking her the same question over the years. The first time they went ziplining in Hawaii. The first time he introduced her to a new restaurant. The first time-

“ _ Melinda.  _ Do you trust me?” He asked again, more urgently this time.

May nodded.

* * *

From his peripherals, Coulson saw Lash practically carrying May toward him and Daisy who were still scuffling.

It took Daisy longer to notice, but when she did, she stopped fighting Coulson and took a few steps back, still winded from their tussel. 

Daisy eyed them all, sizing them up. She crossed her arms defiantly. “Look at you all,” she said in disgust. “Coulson’s covered in bruises, May can’t stand on her own, and you, Dr. Garner? You turned your back on your own people to side with them.” Daisy said, gesturing to May and Coulson.

Phil had made his way over and was now supporting May, which allowed Lash to close the short distance to Daisy.

“You have two choices, Daisy,” Lash said in his deep growl.

She scoffed, but Phil knew her well enough to know she was listening intently.

“You have people in Shield who care about you. Two of them are right there.” he said, gesturing to May and Coulson. “They’re your family.”

Daisy’s face never betrayed an ounce of emotion, her face remained neutral and stoic as Phil knew May had trained her.

“Option one, you choose to have me save you from Hive’s sway. You go home with May and Coulson knowing you chose your family over Hive. Or option two, I release you from the sway against your will and you go home with May and Coulson feeling guilty for choosing Hive over your family.”

Daisy laughed humorlessly. “Actually, I think I pick option three.” She released a powerful quake directly at Lash, sending him flying backwards straight into May and Coulson, and then the three of them plummeted over the edge to the first floor some 20 feet below.

* * *

Daisy sprinted down the stairs toward the pile of bodies she had unintentionally created, and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw movement. As much as she hated the fact they had come after her, she had aimed to kill Lash, not May and Coulson.

As she ran, she passed Hive, who had now gotten to his feet after his own fall, and was watching her curiously. 

“May! Coulson!” she shouted as she got closer, but before she could get close enough to see if they were ok, she nearly collided with Lash. 

Somehow seeing two people she cared about plummet over the edge had given her a brief moment of clarity, from the adrenaline or shock, she didn’t know which. “Take it out! Please!” she begged him. This… this infection of Hive’s had pushed her too far. 

She wanted May and Coulson to leave her alone, but not like  _ this _ . Not by dying. Especially not at her hand. 

Lash put a hand over her heart and every molecule in her body felt like it was being ripped apart as he pulled the particles of Hive out of her. After a few moments that spanned an eternity, the feeling stopped, and she could think clearly for the first time in days.

Daisy pushed past Lash, stopping when she arrived at Coulson’s limp form. Thankfully he had a strong steady pulse, so Daisy moved on to check on May.

May’s leg was at an odd angle, and Daisy felt a pang of regret; she hated herself for what she had done to her S.O. It was then that Daisy noticed the blood pooled in May’s hair. May had no pulse.

A wave of sheer panic washed over Daisy, her blood running cold. Lash was already beside her though, picking up May’s lifeless form and carrying her toward the stairs.

“Wait, no!” Daisy protested as she trailed behind Lash. “May needs CPR! Did you not see the blood on the floor? She’s got a head wound and who knows what else happened in the fall!”

Lash kept walking, ignoring Daisy.

She was becoming more frantic. “May needs a doctor!”

“Then isn’t your best option to go back to Shield? You can fly faster than an ambulance can get her to the nearest hospital.”

They were almost to the top of the stairs, when Daisy realized what Lash’s plan was. “You’re putting her in the containment module?”

Lash nodded.

Once Lash had placed May on the bench and gone back for Coulson, Daisy took May's Limp hand and enveloped it in her own. “May, I’m so, so sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean for this to happen. I-” Daisy paused, swallowing down the painful lump in her throat. “Just... Please stay alive. Don’t leave me.”

* * *

Someone at the Lighthouse had piloted Z1 remotely to bring them home, and Daisy had stayed on comms with Simmons to monitor May and Coulson’s status for the duration of the flight. May was obviously still alive, but barely. When Daisy had rechecked her pulse it was very faint, but there nonetheless. 

They were greeted by a team of surgeons and doctors, who immediately whisked away Coulson and May, already starting IV’s and taking vitals, but it was Simmons who greeted Daisy.

“I’m glad you’re back,” the young scientist said with a small smile.

Daisy just stared at her blankly. 

“Come on Daisy,” Simmons said, taking Daisy gently by the arm. “I’ve got some tests to run to confirm you’re clear of Hive’s control, and you will probably need a blood transfusion.”

* * *

Two hours later, Daisy was still waiting for news of May and Coulson’s condition as she lay staring at the ceiling, lamenting her actions. 

FitzSimmons and Lincoln had tried to convince her that she wasn’t responsible for what happened, but Daisy knew better.

Whatever the outcome, this was because of her. She only hoped Lash would be able to save the Inhumans or better yet, manage to take out Hive.

There was a soft rap on the door, followed quickly by the hydraulics system that opened it. 

She sat up, swinging her legs off the side of the bed to face  _ Mack. _

Daisy took one look at him and immediately knew this was bad news.

“Can I sit, Dais?” he asked somberly.

At her nod, he pulled up a chair and sat close by her side.

“I don’t know how to say thi-”

“Just, say it, Mack.” 

“Coulson is in critical condition, but stable. He fractured a couple of vertebrae, and has a concussion, but should make a full recovery in time.” Mack paused, sighing heavily. “But May….” He cleared his throat and put a hand on Daisy’s knee. “She didn’t make it, Daisy.”

The hope that had briefly welled within her with the news about Coulson was gone, replaced now by a cold, darkness that was dragging her down, further and further into darkness until she felt that she too had died.

* * *

Once Simmons had cleared Daisy medically not long after, Daisy immediately asked to see Coulson. Simmons had told her it wasn’t a good idea, but Daisy wouldn’t be persuaded otherwise, so Simmons had finally agreed and led Daisy to Coulson’s door in the med bay.

“He’s a little groggy, but he’s awake.”

“Does he know about….” Daisy couldn’t even bring herself to say her name.

Jemma nodded sadly, “He does.”

Daisy pushed through the door, but stopped short when she saw the numerous bandages and wires and tubes attached to Coulson.

He had turned his head with a grimace to see who had entered. “No,” he said simply. “Daisy, I can’t see you right now.” 

“I-” she began, but he cut her off.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t, Daisy,” he sounded defeated, and his voice had started to break.

It felt like a slap in the face. Coulson had never turned her away before. All Daisy could say was a pitiful “I’m sorry” before she turned to leave.

* * *

If Jemma was surprised to see her again so quickly, she didn’t show it. 

“I want to see May,” Daisy said determinedly.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea for you to see her like this. We haven’t taken the tubes and wires out, and it can be more traumatising than cathartic for you to see-”

Daisy wheeled about and fixed Jemma with a determined glare. “Jemma, I  _ need  _ to see her.”

“Fine, but only for a moment. I’ll let you see her again after we’ve, uh, cleaned her up a bit.”

Jemma led Daisy to another room, this one further down the hall and completely silent. This time though Jemma came in with her. 

“Here, Daisy, let me pull up a chair for you first.” 

And only once Daisy was seated next to the gurney, did Simmons slowly pull back the sheet to reveal May’s face.

Daisy couldn’t breathe. Seeing May on the table like this, knowing it was her own fault was too much, and she finally broke down into inconsolable sobs.

* * *

Jemma had given her a light sedative, but she woke early the next morning anyway. So she went back one more time to see May. 

Daisy had too much she wanted to say before May’s body was handed over to her family. Logically, she knew this was no longer  _ her  _ May, just an empty shell of the person May once was. But it was all she had left.

Daisy locked the door of the makeshift morgue behind her, lest anyone else should come in, and pulled the chair back to May’s side once again.

She steeled herself and pulled back the sheet, but to her surprise, there were no tubes or wires, and May’s hair was no longer matted with blood. She felt a little relieved that this looked like the May she loved.

Daisy reached for May’s hand once again, and held it tightly as she began to cry.

“May, I-” her voice cracked and she tried again.

“May, I am so sorry. I know, that’s not enough, but that’s all I can ever say now. You trained me into an agent, you showed up for me every time I needed you, and you and Coulson are my family.” Daisy sniffed heavily. “Or you were. And now? You’re gone forever and I think Coulson might be gone in a different way.”

The guilt and despair were threatening to over take her, but she had to finish. She swallowed hard and pushed on. “You didn’t deserve what I did to you, and I wish I could take it back. I just. I needed you to know that I love you. I love you, and I will miss you everyday for the rest of my life.” Daisy laid her head down on the edge of the gurney and wept. 


End file.
